


give it a go

by rocketshiptospace



Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: M/M, festival au, food truck au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-26
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-05-29 07:10:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6364405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rocketshiptospace/pseuds/rocketshiptospace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You know what, Alexander,” Magnus says, studying their menu like he doesn’t already know it by heart, “You should really consider selling hotdogs.” </p><p>Alec sends him a confused look. “What, why? Aren’t my burgers good enough for you?” </p><p>Magnus looks up, “No, no, they are, it’s just,” he grins mischievously, “You really make my wiener stand.”</p><p>or, Alec works in a food truck. Magnus knows an awful lot of food related pick-up lines.</p>
            </blockquote>





	give it a go

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Русский available: [give it a go](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10691010) by [menthol_ocean (Risu_kii)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Risu_kii/pseuds/menthol_ocean)



> hi???? so this is my first malec fic (and definitly not my last lmao i have fallen and i have fallen DEEP) and it is mostly just absolutely ridiculous im ??? so sorry???
> 
> anyway this is for [ace-archer-alec](http://ace-archer-alec.tumblr.com) because she's been a MASSIVE help while writing this and has welcomed me into this fandom with open arms so THANK YOU DARLING <3

Alec has always been a bit of a chef. He has always been interested in food, even when he was younger. He used to sit on a stool in a corner of the kitchen and watch his mom whirl around the kitchen as she prepared dinner, or lunch, or literally anything. Maryse Lightwood might not have always been the best mother, often distant and busy, but she enjoyed cooking more than anything and loved being able to share that with her son. It was the only way for Alec to get at least some of her attention.

For Alec, someone rather quiet who was part of a family filled with big and loud personalities, it was nice to have something that made him at least stand out a bit. Something that made him able to connect with his mom. Something he was _good_ at. And it certainly helped obtaining him a spot in the family business, since his family owned several restaurants across New York.

He loves working in the kitchen of ‘Chef Lightwood’s’, one of his family’s most prestigious restaurants. It’s challenging, but ever changing and never boring. The kitchen feels like home to him, a place between the pots and pans where he can just be himself. He might not have the leadership skills Jace has, or the natural talent for hospitality Isabelle shows, but he’s quite happy where he is right now.

His favorite thing, however, are still the summers, in which his parents put him and Izzy in the old Volkswagen van they turned into a food truck and send them off to sell burgers at festivals.

Alec doesn’t really know where the tradition came from, but it’s been like this since Izzy finished high school. Him and Izzy would pack their bags, enough to last them a few months, hop in the truck, and travel from festival to festival all across America.

He loves that he gets to spend time with his sister like this. They’ve always been close, but as they grew older, they spend less and less time together. Especially now they’ve both finished high school and are working in their family business. Izzy can mostly be found in the front of house, playing the perfect hostess she is, while Alec prefers to be in the kitchen, away from all the guests and formalities, where he can just loose himself in the hectics of rush hour and not worry much about the rest.

But during the summer months, it’s just him and Izzy, and their trusty van. Away from all the strict formalities of the restaurant, from the disapproving glares of their parents, away from all the stress and crazy. Because Alec loves kitchens, he really does, but there is something about the tiny ass kitchen in the food truck that is just irreplaceable.

He also adores the atmosphere at these festivals. The average crowd of a music festival stands in stark contrast with the people that usually come into the restaurant. These people are more relaxed, more laid back, more alive. They’re vibrant and loud and weird and Alec sometimes wishes he could be like that a little bit more. A little less worried about what everyone thinks of him and a little more occupied with living life to the fullest.

Alec thinks about all of this as he watches a group of teenagers practically _covered_ in body paint walk by their truck, excitedly chatting about the bands they will see live later. He’s leaning on the counter, next to Izzy, as they watch the field in front of them slowly trickle full with people. It’s the first day of the festival, and they’ve literally just opened their doors, which means it’s not that busy yet. They’ve already done all of their preparation, however, so now they’re just observing, waiting. Eventually someone will be hungry enough to order a burger. Alec gives it another half an hour max.

“Bright pink hair and flannel tied around his waist, to the left,” Izzy says, shaking Alec from his thoughts. He looks over in the direction she’s nodding in to see the dude she probably means. He’s not that hard to miss.

“No,” Alec says, without much hesitation.

“What do you mean, no? He’s cute, right? I mean yes his hair is _pink_ , which is probably not the kind of guy you would usually go for but you can’t deny he’s cute.” She sounds personally offended that he wouldn’t consider going out with the guy.

It’s a game they like to play when it isn’t really busy, or well, it’s not really a game, it’s more like ‘Izzy points out guys Alec should date and Alec refuses’, but it’s a fun way to pass the time. It’s also a testament of how far Alec has come with accepting his sexuality.

He still remembers when he first started noticing guys, the first time he fell in love. He still remembers thinking he couldn’t tell anyone, remembers never feeling more alone.

Remembers Izzy’s comforting hand on his shoulder when he finally told her. Jace who immediately went in for a hug and said it didn’t change a thing. Max who just shrugged and asked him if he wanted to play catch with him.

(He also remembers his mother’s disapproving stare. His father’s harsh words. They’ve come to terms with it, mostly, but they will never be okay with it. Alec has accepted it. At least his siblings still love him, that’s all that matters.)

“Oh come on, Izzy, look at him. It’s not even his hair, his entire posture just _screams_ heart breaker. I would honestly prefer to keep my heart intact and everything, thank you very much.” Alec argues. Izzy doesn’t look impressed.

“If you never take a chance you’ll never _know_ , Alec. Who knows, he might be the love of your life.”

“Hm, yeah, sure.” He pauses for a second. “Do you reckon our children would have naturally pink hair? That would be cool right.”

Izzy sighs in defeat. “Okay, so pink hair dude is not your soulmate. What about purple Mohawk, to the right?”

Alec sends her a look that gives her all the answers she needs to know.

\--

Eventually during lunch time it gets a lot busier, and Alec loses himself in the burger making process. Over the years him and Izzy have grown into a nice routine that never fails them. Alec mostly mans the grill, flipping burgers and toasting buns, and Izzy takes orders and assembles the burgers. It works best for the both of them, since Izzy will burn a hamburger if she does as much as _look_ at the grill and Alec usually ends up getting so annoyed with customers he will probably throw lettuce at them.

(“That was _one time_ , Izzy.” Alec says, when Izzy brings it up again. “And honestly, he was asking for it. He scrunched up his nose when I told him we used actual meat for our burgers and then proceeded to ask me if he could just give me a plate with only lettuce on it. That’s an insult to my craft.”

Izzy laughs. “Yes, the precise and difficult art of burger flipping. How dare he insult your otherworldly abilities.”

Alec just glares at her.)

“It’s a lot busier than the last festival, isn’t it?” Izzy says over her shoulder as she hands a customer their burgers, “It’s like these people haven’t been fed in _days_.”

Her words shake Alec out of the kind of cooking trance he’d been in and he glances over his shoulder to see what she’s talking about. And indeed, the line is significantly longer than it was last time. Alec’s not complaining, though. After all, it’s good for business and it’s a lot better than just sitting around waiting for _someone_ to show up. He opens his mouth to tell her as much, but the words get caught in his throat as his eyes land on someone standing in line.

In all honesty, he’s not necessarily really special. He’s relatively tall, with his black hair spiked up in a quiff to add even extra height, and he’s wearing denim shorts and a simple white crop top. From his place in the truck Alec can see a smudge of glitter between his eyes, and all and all he blends in perfectly with the rest of the festival crowd. But there’s something, _something_ , that makes Alec pause for a second to stare at him. Maybe it’s the relaxed, carefree way he carries himself. Maybe it’s the tanned exposed skin of his stomach that Alec wouldn’t mind putting his hands on. Or maybe it’s the mischievous glint in his eye, this sparkle of wondrous excitement.

Whatever it is, it doesn’t last long, because before Alec knows it Izzy is snapping her fingers in his face and informing him of the fact that his burgers are burning. “Shit,” he mutters, turning back to the grill to salvage his poor abandoned burgers and forgets all about the guy with the sparkling eyes and the cute tummy.

Eventually the rush dies down and Izzy and him start finishing off the last burgers before they can go on their well-deserved break.

“Please tell me those are almost done,” Izzy whines, staring at the burgers Alec just placed on the grill.

“No,” Alec says, “But I am.”

Izzy laughs like she hasn’t heard that joke a million times before from him and punches his shoulder. “Almost there big bro. Give it all you got.”

Alec rolls his eyes at her and flips the burgers. “You can go already if you want, enjoy some extra time off. As long as you’re back before the dinner rush hour it’s fine.”

“And leave you all alone to throw salad’s at our customers? Don’t think so.” She grabs one of the toasted buns and places a piece of lettuce on it before Alec slides a burger on top. “Besides, we’re all in this together, remember.”

“Stop quoting High School Musical at me,” Alec grumbles as he hands her the container with tomato slices.

Izzy laughs, “You recognized it though.”

“Of course I did,” Alec says, handing her the container with red onion slices next, “You forced me to watch all three movies like a million times when growing up. I still get nightmares sometimes.”

“You’re right, I’ll stop. This is the start of something new.” Alec glares at her and Izzy laughs again. “Kidding, kidding. Okay, fine, I’ll stop now.” She hands the finished burgers to the waiting customers before turning back to her brother, “Anyway, see any tasty bites today? And I’m not talking about food.”

“Of course you’re not talking about food,” Alec said with the roll of his eyes, “And I don’t know why you’re so interested in finding me a man or whatever. It’s getting kind of weird.”

“I just want you to be happy!” Izzy exclaims.

Alec raises an eyebrow. “I _am_ happy. I have a job I like, I have an awesome sister, moderately okay friends, what more could I want?”

“I’m just worried about you,” Izzy says with a frown. “We all have someone. I have Simon, even though he’s touring with his band a lot, he still means the world to me. Jace has Clary, I mean hell, he thinks about proposing to her! And you just… you come home to nothing. I just don’t want you to feel alone.”

Alec thinks about his apartment back home, about the cold impersonal way it’s decorated, the way you can almost feel the loneliness in the walls. Sometimes he sits on the couch late at night and wonders what it would be like, to have someone there. To come home to someone puttering around the kitchen, making dinner. To have someone to share his bed with. To have someone who listens to him ramble about the shitty or funny things that happened at work.

“I’m _fine_ ,” he says instead, because he can’t admit this to Izzy. She’ll just worry about him, and he doesn’t want her to worry.

She sends him a sad smile. “Whatever you say, bro.” She snaps into motion suddenly, taking off her apron and gesturing at Alec to do the same. “Now, come on, let’s go check out the food in this place. I am hungry as hell.”

Alec grins at her. “Sure you don’t just want me to make you a hamburger.”

Izzy sends him a pointed look. “Alec, I love you _and_ your cooking, but if I see one more hamburger right now I will actually start screaming.”

Alec laughs as he follows her out the truck. “I heard someone talking about empanadas being sold only a few truck over. Wanna check that out?”

Izzy cheers. “Hell yeah!”

\--

Alec hadn’t expected to see the boy with the mesmerizing eyes again. Mostly because he hadn’t seen him on any of the other days at the festival, and the next one they went to was quite some miles further. He’d mostly put it to the back of his mind, chalking it up to just a short infatuation.

So saying Alec is surprised to see him again at the next festival would be an understatement.

He shows up a little bit after rush hour, so Alec gets a chance to get a good look at him. He’s still wearing the denim shorts, but this time it’s paired with a black tank top. Though Alec actually finds himself momentarily sad at the fact he can’t see the guy’s tummy now, the tank top accents his arm muscles really well so really there’s not much for Alec to complain about.

Because it’s not that busy, and the burgers are happily cooking away on their own, Alec gives himself a few moments to observe the guy. Izzy’s leaning over the counter so she can properly talk to him, and normally Alec would scold her for violating their hygiene rules, but this time he finds himself distracted by the mischievous quirk of the guy’s mouth. Alec’s pretty sure he’s wearing lipstick, or at least some sort of lip-gloss, because his lips look very shiny and very, _very_ kissable.

He’s animatedly talking to Izzy, waving his arms around in gracious movements, and his entire appearance is just weirdly mesmerizing. Alec finds himself staring a lot. It’s not good.

“Alec, honey, the burgers are burning,” Izzy says, without looking up from where she’s looking at the guy and Alec gets abruptly shaken from his trance as he too notice the slight smell of burnt meat.

“Shit!” He exclaims, flipping his burgers to see they’re all burnt to a crisp. He sighs dejectedly and throws them away. He hates wasting food, especially meat, but he also refuses to serve their customers burnt stuff. It’s all the fault of the stupid pretty guy with his stupid pretty lips and his stupid sparkly eyes.

Speaking off.

“Don’t worry, pretty boy. I don’t mind waiting a little bit longer,” a voice behind Alec says and when he turns around he finds the guy staring at him with a smirk on his face. Once he sees he has Alec’s attention he continuous. “I am quite enjoying the view here.” With that he pointedly looks Alec up and down. Alec flushes bright red and quickly turns back to his burgers.

“Right, yes, sure.” He mumbles. Izzy, who’s watching the exchange with her back leaned against the side of the truck, snorts.

The guy continues, clearly unfazed. “I’m Magnus, by the way. You have a lovely truck here.”

“Uh, thanks,” Alec says, glancing back. He doesn’t fully trust himself not to embarrass himself were he to turn around fully. “I’m Alexander. I mean, Alec. I’m Alec. No one actually calls me Alexander.”

“Well, nice to meet you, Alexander,” Magnus says, smiling cheekily. Alec has never really liked his full name, thinking it sound to formal, too fancy, not fitting of him at all, but he finds he quite likes the way Magnus pronounces it. When Magnus says it, his name suddenly sounds exciting, full of live, like an adventure. It’s weird and foreign, especially because he’s so used to his parents only using his full name when they’re upset with him.

One of the burgers is finished by now and Izzy quickly assembles it before turning back to Magnus. “Here you go, babe,” She says as she hands Magnus his burger.

“Thanks, love,” Magnus says cheerily, “Goodbye, you two!” Before either Alec or Izzy has time to reply, he’s already disappeared back into the crowd moving about.

“He was nice,” Izzy says, as they’re watching the direction Magnus has walked off in. “Don’t you think, Alec?” She has that twinkle in her eyes that never means anything good.

“Yeah, he was okay I guess,” Alec says. If he’s honest with himself he actually found Magnus to be quite intriguing, but he’s not going to tell Izzy that. If he would, she’d never let it go. No, he thinks he’ll just keep this to himself for now. Her look says she already knows, but he ignores it.

 After all, it’s not like he’s ever going to see Magnus again, right?

\--

So maybe Alec was wrong in assuming he would never see Magnus again.

Because, against all odds, there he is, just after rush hour, an entire week after the last time they saw each other. This time he’s wearing a crop top again, a white one with ‘bi the way I’m gay’ on it in black letters, and a pair of black shorts. Once again, he looks mesmerizing. Alec momentarily wonders if Magnus can walk into a room without immediately drawing all the attention to himself. He doesn’t think it’s possible.

“You again?” Alec blurts out, rather rudely. as Magnus steps up to the counter. Simon is playing a gig as this specific festival, and Izzy has gone off to support him, which means Alec is left to man the truck alone. According to Izzy he couldn’t do much damage because there won’t be a lot of customers until dinner time, but clearly she’s wrong. It’s just, Magnus is the _last_ person Alec expected to see here.

“Is that how you greet a regular customer? You are lucky your buns are so great, really makes up for a lot.” Magnus says, smirking at Alec. Alec blinks and opens his mouth to say something, but Magnus interrupts him. “And no, I’m not talking about your bread.”

Alec flushes a bright red and ducks his head, poking at a piece of lettuce that had clearly fallen out of a previous burger on the counter. “I, uh, yeah.” He stutters. “Can I, can I make you anything?”

Magnus smiles at him like he’s the best thing he’s seen all day. It’s kind of unnerving. “A regular burger please. Speaking off burgers, if you were a McDonald’s burger, you’d be a McGorgeous.”

Alec blinks. “Uh,” It’s weird, this mesmerizing, beautiful guy that somehow seems intended on flirting with Alec. Not only that, but also use lame, but surprisingly endearing and funny pick-up lines on top of that. Alec is seriously considering whether this guy is actually real or not. Alec votes no. “Thanks?”

“You’re welcome, darling.” Magnus says, as Alec turns to the grill to make his hamburger. “Also, where is your other half? Izzy was her name right?”

“You mean my sister?” Alec asks. It’s a lot easier to talk to someone who looks like a literal Greek god if he can focus on his grill. “Her boyfriend’s playing a gig right now. She went to check it out.”

“Ah, that explains. Well, I’m not complaining. Apart from your rather rude greeting you’ve been nothing but wonderful.” Magnus leans against the side of the truck as he watches Alec flip burgers.

“That reminds me, I wanted to ask you how you did get to go to so many festivals. I mean, this is the third time we’ve run into each other, isn’t it? Not to be rude, it’s just, not a lot of people have the money or time to go to so many festivals.” Alec pokes at a burger and glances at Magnus, who raises an eyebrow.

“Third, you say?” He says, and Alec flushes as he realizes his mistake. Although it’s true that this is the third time he’s seen Magnus, it is only the second time they’ve talked. Magnus had no idea Alec had seen him that first time.

“I, uh, yes, I saw you in line like two or three weeks ago, so yeah,” He mutters, hoping it doesn’t sound as much as a stalker as he thinks he does. “You, uh, are pretty hard to forget. I mean, you uh, you stand out. In a crowd. So yeah.” And he’s just gone and made it even worse. This is going _awesome_. He’s just immensely glad Izzy isn’t here to see him embarrassing himself.

To his surprise, Magnus just laughs. “Well, I will take that as a compliment, so thank you. But yeah, I do go to a lot of festivals. It’s kind of my job. I’m the festival reporter of the New York Times. They want to spice the newspaper up a bit, so they thought it might be a good idea to do reviews of popular festivals all throughout America. It’s safe to say that I accepted the job quite easily.”

Alec raises his eyebrows. “So you literally just get to go to festivals, have the time of your life for a few days, write something about it, and then move on to the next?”

Magnus nods. “Pretty much. It’s kind of a dream job.”

“I can imagine,” Alec says, as he assembles Magnus’s burger and turns around to hand it to him. “There you go.”

“Ah, right, thank you Alexander,” Magnus goes to pull out his wallet, but Alec keeps up his hand to stop him.

“On the house,” He says, with a soft smile, “Enjoy.”

“Of course,” Magnus says with a smirk on his face. “Wouldn’t want me to write you a bad review in one of my articles would you?”

That is not at all why Alec offered Magnus the burger for free, something they usually _never_ do, but before he can correct Magnus, he adds. “Thank you so much. Goodbye, Alexander.” And then he’s gone. Alec can’t help but once again be impressed by his talent to disappear into the festival crowd.

\--

“Hey McGorgeous,” Magnus says the next time he shows up. It’s not really busy at the moment, which means he interrupts Izzy and Alec in the middle of a game of ‘Point out hot guys so Alec can shut them down’.

“McWho?” Izzy says, confused look on her face as she glances between Magnus’s smirk and Alec’s blushing face.

“McNothing,” Alec quickly says, before Magnus can say anything, “What can we do for you today, Magnus?”

“Oh, there’s a lot of things you could do for me, pretty boy, but for now I’ll just take the regular burger.” Magnus says with a wink, and Alec blush deepens, if that was even possible.

“Right.” He says. “Right, burger, yes. One regular, coming up!” He quickly turns to the grill and ignores the knowing look Izzy sends him. As he focuses on cooking the meat, he hears Izzy and Magnus talk behind him. This time it’s Izzy’s turn to question how come they see Magnus at so many festivals, and Magnus tells her the same thing he’s told Alec last time.

When the burger is finished he turns around to hand it to Magnus. But instead of immediately taking it and walking away like he normally does, Magnus holds on as he looks straight into Alec’s eyes. His gaze is, as always, extremely unnerving and Alec can once again feel the blush rising on his cheeks. He really hopes he can blame it on the current heat when Izzy inevitably asks about it later.

“You know, Alexander,” Magnus very seriously says, still looking deeply into his eyes. “If you were a vegetable, you’d be a cutecumber.”

Alec blinks. “What?”

Magnus just smiles at him. “You heard me. Goodbye, Alexander, Izzy. Was a pleasure seeing you again.” And then he walks off, Izzy yelling an excited “See you later, Magnus!” After him.

When Izzy turns back to Alec, she has a devious grin on her face. “So, Alec.” She says, and Alec groans.

“Shut up, I don’t want to talk about it, please leave, you’re the worst sister ever.” He says, as he busies himself with cleaning his working area.

“He called you McGorgeous. And a _cutecumber_. Is there something you need to tell me Alec?” Izzy’s eyebrow is raised and Alec sighs, knowing she is in no way just going to let this go.

Alec sighs. “There’s nothing, okay. I don’t secretly hook up with him behind your back, I’m not marrying him and we haven’t been secretly dating for the past two years. He’s just a guy who shows up, buys burgers, and shoots ridiculous pick-up lines my way. I’m pretty sure he’s not even interested, that he’s just doing it to get a rise out of me or something, who the fuck knows. Now just _please_ let it go.”

Izzy looks like she just won the lottery. “Oh my god, my brother has a _crush_!” She excitedly exclaims, grabbing Alec’s arms in excitement. Alec glares at her. “You _do_ , you can be grumpy and glare at me all you want but I know you and you want to get in this guy’s pants!” She smiles, “Now, don’t worry, I won’t interfere, at least not yet. I just think it’s cute, and I’m happy for you. And by the way, he’s totally into you too.”

“He’s not, but thanks Izzy,” Alec says, ruffling her hair. She huffs at him and swats at his bicep, and somehow that leads to a play fight that ends when Alec has Izzy in a headlock and a customer shows up, clearing their throat and sending the siblings a disapproving look.

\--

So the pick-up lines sort of become a thing after that, which Alec pretends to hate a lot more than he actually does.

“If you were a fruit, you’d be a fineapple,” Magnus tells Alec the next time he shows up. Alec mutters a ‘Shut up’ as Izzy wiggles her eyebrows at him in the background. He ignores her.

\--

“Hey, is your name earl grey?” Magnus asks, leaning against the side of the truck.

“No, it’s Alec. You know this, even though you insist on calling me Alexander.” Alec says. Magnus completely ignores him.

“Because you are a hot-tea.”

Alec doesn’t blush. He _doesn’t_.

(Spoiler: he does)

\--

“What’s on the menu today?” Magnus asks the next time.

Alec sends him a confused look. “Uh the same as always? I mean, we usually don’t really change the menu during the summer months. Too much work and usually not worth it. Can I just get you the same as always?”

“Really? Because I was hoping it would be me-n-u.” Magnus wiggles his eyebrows.

Alec blinks. “So, the regular, or?”

\--

“Good afternoon, Alexander. Are you from Starbucks?”

Alec frowns. “No, I’m from ‘Lightwood’s burgers’. Which you know. Because you’re standing in front of our truck. Which has our name on it.”

Magnus laughs. “Are you sure? Because I like you a latte.”

This time, Alec actually has to suppress a laugh.

\--

“You know what, Alexander,” Magnus says, as Alec hands him his burger. “I think you are berry cute.”

Alec smiles, as he reaches back to grab something. “Oh come on Magnus,” he says, holding up a slice of cheddar. “That one was just cheesy.”

Magnus actually chokes on a bite of his burger while Izzy loses her shit next to Alec. Alec has never felt more proud.

\--

Unfortunately, Alec retaliation also means that Magnus apparently thinks he needs to step it up a notch.

“You know what, Alexander,” Magnus says, studying their menu like he doesn’t already know it by heart, “You should really consider selling hotdogs.”

Alec sends him a confused look. “What, why? Aren’t my burgers good enough for you?”

Magnus looks up, “No, no, they are, it’s just,” he grins mischievously, “You really make my wiener stand.”

Alec turns so red he’s pretty sure someone could confuse him with a slice of tomato and he’s pretty sure Izzy actually dies laughing. Magnus just smiles. It’s both the cutest and the most evil thing Alec has ever seen. Alec decides focusing on Magnus’s smile is the best option right now, rather than thinking about his…. Wiener.

This is going to be a really long summer.

\--

Magnus steps up his game even more next time he shows up, carrying an ice cream cone. This alone should be warning for Alec that the next few minutes are just…. not going to be good for him. Because apparently Magnus is incapable at eating ice cream normally, or he is just really not trying to make this easy for Alec.

Honestly, Alec had never had much of an oral fixation, but watching Magnus poke out his tongue to catch some of the ice cream droplets that were running down the cone made him want to scream in fourteen different languages.

“Good afternoon,” Magnus says cheerily, acting like he isn’t totally giving a show with this fucking ice cream cone. It’s entirely unfair, Alec thinks, that he has to develop a crush on the one guy who insist on making him die a sexually frustrated death.

“How’s business going today?”  Magnus asks, after Izzy greets him cheerily and Alec just glares at him. He licks up a long stripe of ice cream. Alec grabs the mayonnaise bottle before he punches a hole in the van.

He doesn’t even know why this is getting to him so much. He just knows that he can’t stop looking at Magnus’s fucking _tongue_ and how he wishes he knew what it would be like to feel it in completely other _inappropriate_ places. Why is this his life.

Magnus and Izzy are still idly chatting, and Alec can vaguely hear Izzy ask where Magnus got his ice cream. Alec wants to respond with ‘From hell, where it clearly needs to go back to,’ but then a drop of ice cream lands on one of Magnus’s fingers. Alec watches helplessly as Magnus frowns, raises his hand, and sucks his finger into his mouth. If that mental imagine isn’t already horrible enough he looks up at Alec right as he’s licking off the excess ice cream and Alec squeezes the mayonnaise bottle so hard it explodes in his hand.

 “Alec!” Izzy squeaks, as some of the mayonnaise lands on her apron. “Oh my god, what are you _doing_?!”

“Shit,” Alec mutters, holding up his hands, which is literally covered in mayonnaise. He really doesn’t want to think about the mental images _that_ gives him. He grabs a nearby cloth and starts wiping it off as Izzy sends him a confused look.

“Did you just squeeze a mayonnaise bottle so hard it exploded?” She asks. Over her shoulder Magnus is grinning at them. Alec turns slightly red.

“What? No. No, I just.” He looks at the mess on the counter. Magnus looks positively gleeful. “It fell over?”

Izzy raises an eyebrow. “It fell over and then just… exploded?”

Alec nods, too fast to be really convincing. “Yes. Yes, that is totally what happened.” From the other side of the counter, Magnus takes another lick of his ice cream. Alec can’t believe this torture still isn’t over. Hasn’t he caused enough damage yet?

“Whatever you say, brother.” Izzy says, but her expression read she doesn’t fully believe him and that this will certainly not be the last time they’ll talk about it. “Anyway, Simon’s here and I promised I’d meet up with him before his gig. You’ll be fine for a bit right?”

“Yeah, yeah sure,” Alec says, still wiping mayonnaise of the counter. “As long as you’re back before rush hour. Oh, and uh,” He looks a bit sheepish, “Can you maybe bring new mayonnaise? We’re kind of out.”

Alec’s pretty sure Izzy’s laugh can be heard all over the festival terrain.

When she’s gone, he turns back to Magnus. Alec’s prayers must’ve been heard, because he’s finished most of the ice cream, and now he’s just idly nibbling on the cone. Compared to the show he was giving earlier, it’s surprisingly cute. “So, Magnus, is there anything I can do for you or are you just out here flaunting another van’s products to lure the customers away from ours?”

Magnus laughs, “I would _never_. No, I just needed some refreshment. It’s rather hot out today, isn’t it?” He asks, pointedly looking Alec up and down. He’s right, it’s really hot, which means Alec has traded his usual black t-shirt for a black tank top. Izzy always tells him his biceps look nice in it, but he never really believes her. Although he might have to reconsider it, seeing the way Magnus is looking at him like _he’s_ the ice cream, rather than the cone in his hand.

“Anyway, my dear Alexander, are you made of ice cream?”

Alec snorts, “Clearly not.”

“Really?” Magnus says, raising an eyebrow. “Because I can’t wait to eat you up.”

Alec sends him an unimpressed look. “That was your worst one so far. You’ve already eaten an entire ice cream cone, why would you want even more. I mean, I know it’s hot, but that’s just going to get you sick.”

“You’re no fun,” Magnus says, leaning against the side of the van like he always does. “Okay, second chance,” He’s silent for a few seconds, obviously deep in thought, before coming with,  “Your legs are like a banana split, I want to spread them and eat the creamy good stuff in the middle.”

Alec promptly chokes on his own spit.

“Oh my god,” he heaves, when he has mostly regained his breath, “Has that one ever actually worked on anyone?”

Magnus smirks. “I don’t know, you tell me.”

“Uh,” Alec says, turning bright red, not really sure what I should say, “I, uh, hey do you actually want to order something or are you just going to bother me with weird pick-up lines all afternoon?” He blurts out. It’s a lame change of topic, but Alec is glad Magnus takes it.

“Honestly, there’s a band I have to write a review for starting in a few minutes, so I’m afraid I have to go. Duty calls,” He smiles, albeit a bit sadly. “It was nice seeing you again, though. Goodbye, Alexander.”

“Goodbye, Magnus,” Alec mutters, staring as Magnus once again disappears into the crowd. Deep in thought, Alec leans his hands on the counter, in the middle of a dollop of mayonnaise he forgot to wipe away. Alec wonders what he ever did to deserve all this.

\--

“We need to talk about the mayonnaise thing,” Izzy says about a week later, as they’re waiting for lunch rush hour to start.

“We absolutely do not need to talk about the mayonnaise thing.” Alec tells her. He’s looking out over the field, pointedly refusing to look at Izzy. She’ll look right through him. It’s a sunny day, and Alec watches people lazy around in the grass, most of the clearly nursing a hangover.

“We _do_.” Izzy says, “I talked to Magnus a few days ago.”

“Okay,” Alec says, “And this is relevant because?”

Izzy sighs, “This is relevant because he told me he doesn’t think you’re interested in him.”

“Uh,” Alec says, not sure what to do with this information. “Okay?”

“No, it’s not okay! You _clearly_ have the hots for this guy and he obviously likes you back and you’re not doing anything about it! And don’t even try to deny it,” Izzy says as Alec opens his mouth to interrupt her. “I’ve been texting Clary and Jace about this all summer and they totally agree with me. Even _they_ can see you’re in love with Magnus and they’re not even _here_.”

“I,” Alec starts, “You told Clary and Jace?”

Izzy sends him a look “ _That’s_ what you decide to focus on?”

It is, because if Alec thinks too much about the fact that _he totally has a crush on Magnus_ and _Magnus might like him back_ he might actually start believing they have a chance. Which they just really, really don’t.

They’re too different, him and Magnus. Magnus is this, this _enigma_ , who can light up a room simply by stepping into it, who can make someone smile by just looking at them, who people are drawn to like moths to a flame. Alec, however, Alec is a nobody. He doesn’t mind, really, he’s just really not that special. He flips burgers during the summer and plates up fancy food in the winter. He just doesn’t think he’s something to write home about, something to _care_ about. Let alone someone to have a crush on.

He has to face it though, the fact that he’s developed a crush on Magnus. It’s not really that surprising, Magnus is like the brightest star in the universe and Alec can’t help being drawn to him. There’s just something about him, from the way he looks to the way he talks, that makes Alec want even more. Makes Alec want everything.

But that’s not a possibility, because no matter what Izzy says, there’s no way Magnus actually likes him too. Magnus could do so, _so_ much better. He’s only using those pick-up lines on Alec because he likes how Alec responds, likes playing with him. There’s no way he’s actually _flirting_ with Alec.

“Alec,” Izzy says, sounding soft and caring, placing a hand on Alec’s shoulder, shaking Alec from his thoughts.

“He doesn’t actually like me,” Alec blurts out, and sometimes he really, _really_ wishes he could lie to his sister.

Izzy snorts, “Are you kidding me? That is what you’re worried about? That he doesn’t actually like you? You’re joking, right? He’s been flirting with you ever since you first met.”

“He’s _not_ ,” Alec says, frowning. “He’s just having some fun. He isn’t actually _interested_.”

Izzy blinks at him. “He cares for you, Alec. He’s been flirting with you because he _likes_ you. No one actually spends that much time coming up with lame pick-up lines just because they want to mess with someone, Alec. He’s interested. Give him a chance.”

“Oh god,” Alec says, looking at Izzy with wide eyes. “Oh god, _he’s been flirting with me_.”

“You have got to be shitting me,” Izzy mutters. “Yes. Yes he has.”

“Because he’s _interested_.”

“Yes. Yes he is.”

“Oh, _fuck_.”

“Eloquent, brother. Can really see why Magnus is into you.” Izzy gives him a consoling pat on his shoulder. Alec blinks.

“ _Fuck_.”

\--

So, well. Maybe Magnus has actually been flirting with Alec, _because he likes Alec_. This is. It’s something. Alec just needs to process it for a bit.

The biggest problem with this all is that he doesn’t know what to _do_. He’s never really been interested in someone who’s been interested in him as well, unless you count the few flings he had in high school. But it’s never been like this. This feels a lot bigger than that. And now he doesn’t know how to deal with it.

Alec refuses to ask Izzy for help, because she’s still laughing at him over the fact he didn’t realize _Magnus was flirting with him_. He also can’t ask Jace, because Izzy apparently texted Jace about what happened, and then Jace called him and just laughed at him for a good ten minutes. Clary will also be hopeless, because she’s one of those dreamy types who will start talking about ‘If it’s meant to be, it will happen’ which Alec is just really not willing to put up with. He momentarily considers Simon, but he knows Simon can’t keep anything from Izzy and if she finds out he asked Simon for advice instead of her, he’s toast.

So really, he just has to handle this on his own. Which is fine. He’s an adult. He can handle feeling for someone in an adult way.

Or, well, maybe not.

\--

The whole inner turmoil Alec is struggling with comes to a head two weeks later. He’s seen Magnus a few times in between his conversation with Izzy and now, and every single time he felt awkward in his own body, way too focused on what he was saying and doing. Magnus seemed completely unfazed, happily coming up with weird pick-up line after weird pick-up line, making Alec blush on more than one occasion.

It’s been threatening to rain all morning, and the sky is covered in grey clouds that don’t look very promising. The weather hasn’t been this bad yet all summer, but Alec knows from experience that if it starts raining very soon, that it’ll have a bad influence on their revenue. He’s not worrying about that too much, though. They’ve made enough in the past few weeks to be able to afford a bad day.

When it eventually does fall, it falls with buckets. The entire field immediately clears out as people find their hiding in tents or under small overhanging roofs. The food court is secluded from the actual festival terrain, where all the stages are, but Alec can imagine the chaos there. A few people seem to not really care, as they stubbornly keep walking. Some even start performing some sort of weird rain dance.

Alec leans back against the counter, knowing it’s not going to be really busy as long as the rain is falling. No one will willingly get out there unless they really have to, and he can imagine hamburgers aren’t really people’s number one priority right now.

“Well, that’s disappointing,” Izzy says, leaning her elbows on the counter. “How long do you think it will last?”

Alec shrugs. “With the drought they’ve been having here? Could be all day. Let’s hope not, though. Will be boring as hell then.”

“People will eventually get hungry, right?” Izzy says poking at the ketchup bottle. “I mean, they will have to get food at some point. I feel like hamburgers are perfect rain food.”

Alec snorts, “You think hamburgers are perfect everything food.” But before Izzy can say anything to protest, her attention gets grabbed by something else. Or more, _someone_ else. Someone is sprinting across the field, straight in their direction.

“Is that-“ Izzy starts, but before she can finish the figure has reached them and suddenly Magnus is standing in front of them.

“Good morning, Lightwoods!” He says cheerily, like he didn’t just sprint through the pouring rain just to duck under the small overhanging roof of their truck. “God, I _hate_ running. You don’t, do you Alexander?” Magnus says, focusing his attention on Alec. “Since you’ve been running through my mind all day.”

Not for the first time, Alec can feel himself blush. He’s not sure what to say, can’t keep his eyes off Magnus. Magnus, who _ran to their truck through the pouring rain_ , just to make a dumb pick up line _to flirt with Alec_. Sometimes Alec seriously wonders how Magnus can be real.

Especially right now. He’s soaking wet, his t-shirt sticking to his body, outlining his body perfectly. Alec really, _really_ wants to run his hands all over it. Droplets of water are still stuck to Magnus’s hair, and there’s a few running down his face. His make-up somehow managed to stay completely unscathed, and Alec can’t stop staring at the way the perfect wing of his eyeliner accents the mischievousness Alec likes so much about Magnus.

And this beautiful, _beautiful_ man wants to talk to Alec. Wants to _flirt_ with Alec. It’s kind of unreal. Things like this never happen to Alec, but now that they do, he needs to do something about it. _Now_ , before he loses this weird sense of courage he just gained.  

So when Magnus sends him a worried look and asks “Alec? You okay?” Alec grabs him by the front of his soaking wet shirt and hauls him forward, kissing him square on the mouth. Surprising not only himself, but also Magnus, who makes a confused noise against Alec’s mouth.

Magnus doesn’t respond to the kiss immediately, which makes Alec panic and pull away. “Oh shit, oh fuck. I’ve been reading it all wrong haven’t I? You weren’t actually flirting with me because you like me? Shit, I am _so_ sorry. I never should’ve kissed you.”

“Are you kidding me?” Magnus says, eyes blown wide with shock, or lust, or whatever emotion that is supposed to be. Alec is not really thinking clear right now. “You, I, what?” And Alec is momentarily surprised at the fact that he somehow managed to render Magnus silent, which he is pretty sure is something that almost _never_ happens, but then he’s being pulled into a kiss again and he sort of forgets about everything else.

“So, uh, you don’t mind? That I kissed you?” Alec hesitantly asks, when they pull away again. From the corner of his eye, he can she Izzy frantically texting on her phone. He doesn’t need to ask to know she’s keeping the rest of their friends updated. Wonderful.

“Alexander,” Magnus says, and it sounds a bit breathless. “I’ve been wanting to do that ever since I first saw you flip a burger. Although I must admit my interests were purely sexual back then. Your arms are… pretty distracting.”

“Uh,” Alec says. “Thanks?”

“You’re welcome,” Magnus says, with a flourish of his hand that reminds Alec that this is still undeniably Magnus. That he isn’t dreaming this. Because even in his dreams he would never be able to fully replicate the wonder that is Magnus Bane.  “But over the weeks…. You’re really lovely, Alexander. I wouldn’t mind getting to know you better. And I certainly wouldn’t mind kissing you again."

“I wouldn’t either,” Alec mutters, suddenly feeling a bit nervous. “Wouldn’t mind getting to know you better, I mean. Kissing you again.” He fiddles with his hands. It’s like suddenly all his previously found courage has suddenly disappears and he doesn’t know what to do anymore.

“Good. Are you off tonight?” Magnus asks, and Alec wants to open his mouth and deny because _no, they have to sell burgers, they have to work and then afterwards he has to clean and make inventory and-_ , but Izzy interrupts him.

“Yes. He gets off at nine. You can pick him up here. I’ll take care of the rest.” She points the last sentence at Alec, and Alec smiles gratefully at her. He hates living Izzy alone to care for the truck, but he also knows there is no way to convince her otherwise and he isn’t want to deny this golden ticket opportunity. It will be nice to spend some time with Magnus outside of the van, explore the festival for a bit. Usually Alec doesn’t get much of a chance for that.

“Excellent!” Magnus says, brilliant smile on his face as he looks at Alec. “Well, I have to leave again. Despite the rain, I still have a festival to report on. Although I must say, this might actually be my favorite one so far.” He winks. “Goodbye, Lightwoods. See you tonight, Alexander.” And with those final words he sprints off into the rain again.

“Not a _word_ ,” Alec says, as Izzy turns to look at him.

“Just one thing,” Izzy says, bright smile on her face, “I told you so.”

\--

Magnus comes to pick Alec up for their first date at exactly nine pm that night. It has stopped raining by now, but the field is still a muddy mess and Magnus is actually wearing rain boots. They’re pink with flowers on them, and they are in strong contrast with his skinny jeans and a green button up with flowers. The sleeves of the button up are rolled up, and the first few buttons are undone, exposing a bit of Magnus’s chest. Alec has a hard time not staring.

“Good afternoon Alexander,” Magnus says, and Alec starts from where he had been staring at the smudge of glitter on Magnus collarbone. “You ready for our date?”

“Uh,” He stutters out. “Yes. Date. Totally ready.” He rips off his apron and presses a hasty kiss to Izzy’s forehead as he exits the van through the little back door. He’s still in the clothes he’s been wearing all day, simple black jeans and a black t-shirt, but he doesn’t think Magnus will mind much. He really doesn’t want to shorten their time by needing to change in something else.

“Good luck, big bro,” Izzy says, bright smile on her face. “I totally got this.”

“Please text me if you need _any_ help. I’m serious, Izzy, please don’t accidentally burn down the van because you are too stubborn to interrupt my date or something like that.”

Izzy laughs, “Don’t worry, Alec, I won’t burn down the van. Now, go enjoy your date, yeah?”

“I will,” Alec says, sending Izzy one last smile before he rushed out the truck to meet Magnus.

“You know what I just realized?” Magnus says, as Alec steps up to meet him. “I have never actually gotten a good look at your legs. They’re always hidden behind that damned counter.”

Alec laughs and shakes his legs out a bit, “And? What’s the verdict?”

“As devastatingly handsome as the rest of you,” Magnus says with a wistful smile, before extending his hand out to Alec. “Now, come on, we have a festival to explore.”

 

Alec slides his hand in Magnus’s and it feels like it’s been something they’ve been doing for years. The way Magnus fingers fit between Alec’s is almost natural, like it was supposed to be. He follows Magnus, falling in step with him as they call one last goodbye to Izzy. Because it’s only nine it’s not dark yet, but the sun is low in the sky and is throwing long shadows over the still wet grass.

“It’s weird.” Alec says, breaking the silence that had fallen over them, “But I’ve never actually been to a festival.” Alec can see Magnus sending him a look and Alec laughs. “Okay, like, technically I go to festivals all the time, but not like this. I never get the chance to walk around, to see things. I don’t even know what we’re supposed to _do_. Like, what do you normally do at these festivals?”

“I always have a few bands I have to go to in order to write a review. Most of the time I just enjoy the general ambience, interview some people here and there. Eat a hamburger at this really, _really_ good food truck that has the most handsome chef,” Magnus sends him a twinkling smile and Alec laughs to hide the blush on his face. “Speaking of food, are you hungry? I mean you must be, you haven’t eaten yet, right?”

“I haven’t,” Alec says, and right on cue his stomach starts to grumble. Magnus laughs.

“Well, may that be clear. Come on, I know a place that sells the best toasties.” Magnus drags him off in the direction of a food truck far away from his own, a lot closer to the actual festival terrain.

“How do you know that?” Alec fake gasps, “Magnus Bane, have you been _cheating on me_?”

“Darling, you’re great, and I could watch you flip burgers all day, but you’re insane if you think that I can live on a festival diet of hamburgers alone.” Magnus says.

Alec laughs, “And here I was, thinking you only liked me for my burgers.”

“The burgers are a plus,” Magnus says, “But I have to say I stayed for your sparkling personality.” He adds a wink to that last sentence and Alec frowns.

“I can’t tell if you’re serious or not.”

Magnus laughs, “Well, that’s for me to know and for you to find out.” His eyes sparkle when he smiles up at Alec and Alec has to suppress the incredible urge to just grab his face and kiss him. It also hits him that if he wanted to, _he could_. Magnus probably wouldn’t mind. Because Magnus _likes him_. It still hasn’t fully sunken in.

They eat toasties and laugh and Alec talks about the truck, about the weird customers they’ve had over the years, and Magnus actually listens with apparent interest on his face. It’s weird, for Alec, to be the focus of someone’s attention like this. He’s so used to be overshadowed by Izzy, by Jace, that it’s foreign for him to have someone who like _him._ Who wants to listen to him stutter through his weird stories and actually _encourages him_.

It’s not that Magnus never actually says anything himself, he does, he talks about his own experiences regarding festivals and does impressions of people who over the years have told him journalism isn’t an actual profession and Alec laughs harder than he has in a really long time.

With Magnus, he feels free. He feels like himself, like he can _be_ himself. Magnus doesn’t pressure him to be better, to be the best, like his parents do. He doesn’t care what others think of him, and he doesn’t judge. He just accepts Alec like he is, and it should not be as refreshing as it is.

“Come on,” Magnus says, when they’ve long finished their toasties and are just sitting around, talking. “There’s a band starting in a few minutes that I actually really wanna see.”

Alec has never really been interested in concerts or festivals or bands in general, even. Izzy has always been the one to turn up the radio, to ask Alec to drive her back and forth to concerts, the one who even ended up with a boyfriend in a band. But the way Magnus is almost vibrating with excitement, bright smile on his face, makes Alec realize that Magnus could literally tell him they would go and stare at a dumpster for an hour and a half and he’d still go with him.

Magnus grabs Alec’s hand again, and Alec’s heart does that little leap thing it’s been doing for most of the night. He knows he’s being a bit sappy about all of this, but with Magnus by his side, he can’t really find it in himself to care. They walk across the field, and for the first time Alec actually leaves the food court to see the _actual_ festival. Most of the times he’s here it’s at the beginning or the end, when no one’s actually there and the stages are either being built or taken apart. Sure, some festivals have the food court closer to the actual stages, and it’s not like he’s ever seen _anything,_ but he’s never really payed attention like this. Especially at night the field, crowded with people and bathed in the lights of the stage, looks almost magical. There isn’t a band playing at the moment, but the nervous and excited chatter of the crowd tells Alec that there soon will be.

“I should go to festivals more often,” Alec breaths out, and Magnus laughs.

Alec expects them to go towards the main stage, but Magnus drags him in a different direction, away from the big crowd of people. They head for a smaller stage, where a lot less people are waiting. Magnus falls down to sit in the grass and Alec follows him without much thought. It isn’t until he sits down that he realizes the grass is still wet. Magnus laughs at the look on his face, but neither of them get up.

They’re close enough that they can still sort of see the stage, but far away enough to not be bothered by the noise or the crowd too much. Magnus knocks his shoulder against Alec’s, and Alec nudges him back. They look at each other, matching grins on his faces, and just when Alec feels himself lean in to kiss him, the band starts their opening notes and they both pull away to look at the stage.

Alec should probably feel sad at this missed opportunity to kiss Magnus, but he can’t really find it in himself to do so when Magnus is staring up at the stage with a soft, happy look on his face, quietly mouthing along to the words. Alec finds himself nodding along as well.

Suddenly the band slows down and starts playing an acoustic, slower version of ‘You’re the one that I want’. Alec’s watched Grease enough times at Izzy’s insistence to be able to start humming along. Magnus is humming along as well, and when Alec looks next to him, he mouths ‘You better shape up, cause I need a man’ in Alec’s direction.

Alec laughs, but immediately plays along. By the time they reach the chorus they’re both singing along out loud. By the second time the chorus comes along their faces are somehow only inches apart and by the time the singer croons out “The one I need, oh yes indeed,” Alec’s lips find his way to Magnus’s.

It’s just as wonderful as the first kiss, if not even better. The first kiss felt rushed, desperate, hesitant. This kiss feels slower, more like coming home. It’s tinged with the realization that they both want this, and that they have plenty of time to figure out what _this_ exactly is.

Magnus’s hands find their way into Alec’s hair, and Alec’s hands are firmly placed on Magnus’s waist. Alec loses himself in the kiss, in Magnus, in the moment, which means he totally doesn’t see it coming when Magnus pushes him backward, straight into the mud.

“You _asshole!_ ” Alec exclaims, as Magnus laughs above him. No, it’s not laughing. It’s more like evil cackling.

“Oh, darling, you should have seen your _face_.” Magnus wheezes out in between laughs. He’s not laughing for long, however, as Alec is suddenly on top of him, pushing him down in the mud as well. Magnus doesn’t give up that easily and wails “No, not my button-up!” as he immediately starts fighting back, which means they end up rolling through the muddy grass like a bunch of children.

Alec doesn’t care, only cares about the delighted laugh that leaves Magnus’s mouth when he actually manages to pin Alec down, the betrayed squeak he lets out when Alec easily gets the upper hand again. Eventually Alec manages to properly pin Magnus down, the other boy and panting, laughing mess under him.

“All right, all right, you have defeated me!” Magnus wails out dramatically, laugh still clear on the edges of his voice. “I was foolish to assume I could ever defeat the almighty Alec Lightwood! How could I be so idiotic!”

“Stop it,” Alec laughs, and when Magnus continues to wail about his tragic demise, Alec shuts him up the only way he know; by leaning down and capturing his lips with Magnus’s.

\--

When the band ends, Alec and Magnus wander around the festival for a while. They’re still caked in mud from head to toe, but none of the other festival goers seem to find that particularly weird. It’s nice, walking around somewhere no one cares if you hold hands with a man or have mud smudged on your face.

Eventually they wander towards the campsite. Magnus had offered to bring Alec home, but Alec had reflected, saying he’d be fine walking back alone and he’d rather make sure Magnus made it to his tent safely. Magnus had mumbled something about a knight in a shining armor, but eventually agreed, so now they were walking between the maze of tents, hands clasped together and swinging loosely between them.

“We have arrived,” Magnus says, when they reach what is undeniably his tent. It’s purple, and someone, probably Magnus himself, has drawn fake windows on the side. One of the windows has a cat sitting on the windowsill. Alec can’t help the smile that creeps on his face.

“It’s beautiful,” he says, as Magnus turns back to look at him. They’re standing face to face now, and it’s clear that neither of them really knows what to do next. Even Magnus, who usually seems to stroll through live like he’s the man with all the answers, seems a bit lost.

“Thank you,” Magnus says, soft smile on his face. His eyeliner is smudged, and there’s a little bit of mud still on his cheek.

“You have a little mud, right there” Alec says, pointing at Magnus’s face, Magnus reaches up his hand and attempt to rub it off, but very clearly fails. Alec huffs out a soft laugh and reaches up his hand, running his thumb over Magnus’s cheekbone to wipe it away. His hand lingers, even after it is gone. “I had fun tonight,” he mumbles, certain that Magnus will still be able to hear him now they’re away from all the loud noises of the actual festival.

“Of course you did,” Magnus says, “You had lovely company, after all.”

Alec laughs, but his hand doesn’t leave Magnus’s cheek and Magnus places his on Alec’s hips. “I really did.” Alec says, and then Magnus is pulling him forward and kisses him again.

Alec doesn’t think he’ll ever tire of kissing Magnus.

\--

Izzy spends the entire morning interrogating him, which does not surprise Alec at all. He annoys her by refusing to give her any details, answering her questions with a vague ‘Yeah it was fine’ ever time, and she looks about five seconds away from slamming his face down on the grill.

“Come on, Alec, you can’t do this to me. At least tell me if there will be a next date.” She whines.

Which is the exact moment Magnus decides to show up. He looks radiant, as always. He’s wearing a crop top again, just like that first day, and shorts. Since the weather is better but the field is still pretty muddy he has paired it with the pink flowered rain boots. Alec can feel the fond smile creep upon his face. “Good morning, Alexander,” Magnus says cheerily, and before Alec can stop himself he’s leaning forward to give Magnus a peck on the lips.

“Good morning, Magnus,” He says smiling at Magnus before turning to Izzy, “Did that answer your question?”

Izzy hits him with a tea towel in response.

\--

They sort of become a thing after that. It’s never anything official, and they never really talk about it, but it’s clear that they’re at least dating. Every time Alec finishes work he wanders around with Magnus for a bit, eating dinner and just talking for a while. Sometimes they just sit on the grass in a secluded patch and throw pieces of popcorn at each other. Sometimes they go see a band and both pretend they can actually dance, which they really, _really_ can’t. Sometimes they just walk in silence admiring their environment and, secretly, each other.

There’s a dark cloud hanging above their heads however, one that Alec desperately tries to ignore. It’s the fact that summer is nearing an end, and Alec isn’t really sure he will see Magnus after that. After all, they’re having a nice time together now, but it’s almost a fantasy. The festival world is this magical world where everything is possible and anything can happen and Alec isn’t sure if they can be anything outside that.

Because in the grand scheme of things, they are two very, _very_ different people. Alec is quiet, more to himself, not as outspoken. Magnus, however, is loud, vibrant, a sun to Alec’s tiny, barely there star. If it hadn’t been for festivals, they probably would’ve never even met. The thought of that hurts Alec more than the idea that he might not see Magnus anymore after the summer is over. They might not last, but at least he got to be with Magnus for a while, however short it may have lasted.

And that’s how Alec decides to go about all of this. It might not last, but he has Magnus here and now, and that’s the most important thing. If anything, this whole thing could be a summer fling Alec looks back on with a bittersweet feeling. A story Izzy will bring up when they are old and grey. “Hey, remember that one summer with that guy with the pick-up lines that basically took away your ability to be a normally function human being?”

So Alec enjoys ever tiny little moment he gets. The soft feeling of Magnus’s lips against his. The twinkle in Magnus’s eyes when he laughs. Magnus’s fingers laced with his. The feeling of freedom he gets whenever he’s around Magnus. The way the sun kisses his skin, the way water droplets run down his face. With every memory he files away for later, the feeling of having to let all of this go at the end of the summer becomes heavier. 

If Alec had been a braver person, he would’ve tried to make it work. He would’ve grabbed Magnus by the hand and never let go unless Magnus asked him to. But Alec was not a brave person. He was scared, scared that in the end it wouldn’t work out, scared that he would end up with a broken heart, scared of falling in love.

So he lets Magnus go.

\--

It’s the last festival of the summer and there’s an almost desperate feeling hanging in the air, despite the bright sun that illuminates it all. People are clinging to these last rays of sunshine, these last moments of freedom, these last moment of carelessness, before real life starts again. Alec gets it, for the first time in years. Normally, he would shake his head at all those people who refused to accept summer was almost over. It used to be all the same to him. Whether he worked in the truck or in the restaurant, it didn’t really matter to him much.

But now. Now he, just like everyone else, wants time to freeze, so he can live on in this moment forever, live on in this _summer_ forever. Izzy seems to share his sentiment, because she’s been listlessly cleaning the same spot on the counter for the past ten minutes.

“I think that’s clean now,” Alec dryly states, and Izzy glares at him.

“I’m just trying to pass the time,” Izzy says, looking Alec dead in the eye as she starts scrubbing at the same spot again.

“Yes, and it’s getting on my nerves so quit it,” he snaps and Izzy sighs, throwing the cloth down.

“Alec, I love you, but this whole moping thing is kind of pathetic. This doesn’t have to be the end for you and Magnus, you know that, right? He’s just waiting for you to ask him to see him again. He won’t ask you, because he doesn’t want to put that pressure on you, but if you would ask him to date even after this summer is over he would say yes in a heartbeat. Don’t let your own stubbornness get in the way of your own happiness, big bro.”

Alec sighs as Izzy puts comforting hand on his shoulder. He hates how his sister always manages to read him like an open book. “It’s not,” he pauses and runs a hand through his hair. “I can’t do that, Izzy. I can’t take that risk, I just… What if it doesn’t work out? We’re just, we’re too different, and I’d rather have the memories of a summer fling than heartbreak in the long run.”

“That’s bullshit and we both know it,” Izzy says, and Alec flinches at the harshness in her tone. “But in the end it’s your choice. Just please, for the sake of all of us, make the right one.”

“I will,” Alec says, already knowing that his sister isn’t going to like the outcome.

\--

If Alec learned one thing from Magnus in the short time they spend together, is that he is not as good as hiding his emotion as he thinks he is.

Now, for example, as he’s standing in front of Alec, he’s making jokes and wide gestures with his arms and to anyone who doesn’t know him it might seem he’s careless, but Alec can see all of the underlying emotions. He can see the small sag in Magnus’s shoulders, the absence of that sparkle Alec likes so much in his eyes, the way his smiles never fully reach his lips. “So,” Magnus says, with a wave of his hand that doesn’t have the usual flourish behind it, “Last day, huh?”

“Yeah,” Alec says, “It’s weird. We’re already going back home tomorrow. I mean, I’ll miss it, but it’ll be nice to see Jace again, and Clary, and my parents.” He doesn’t say ‘ _But I would rather stay with you_.’ Doesn’t let himself think of the possibility.

  
“Hm,” Magnus says, “I bet they’ve missed you.” There’s a silent ‘I know I will miss you’ hanging in the air and Alec swallows. This is it. This is the moment to tell Magnus he’d like to see him again, that he would like to give real dating a try. That he wants to give _them_ a try.

But then he looks at Magnus’s ‘Save the drums, bang a drummer’ t-shirt, his flowered vans, the little bit of glitter stuck on his cheek, and he is once again hit with the feeling of how they would never work out. Alec is too boring, too normal for someone as bright and out of this world as Magnus. He could never continue to grab Magnus’s attention if they were back in New York.

“Yeah,” Alec says again, instead of ‘ _When can I see you again, let’s go on a date when we’re back in New York_ ’. “I had fun this summer.”

“Me too,” Magnus says, and the smile on his face is soft but sad. “You make quite the lovely company.”

“Thank you,” Alec whispers, “You’re not too bad yourself.” His hand finds Magnus’s cheek as he speaks, and Magnus automatically leans into it. He lets himself have this, this last time he might get to touch Magnus like this. Magnus’s eyes flick down to his lips and Alec follows the movement, involuntarily feeling himself lean in.

When their lips touch, it’s nothing like the magic it was all those times before. Instead it feels like a goodbye, almost melancholic, as Magnus’s hands reach up to softly touch Alec’s chest. When they finally pull away Magnus looks even sadder than he did before and Alec hates that he’s the reason he looks like that.

“Goodbye, Alexander,” Magnus says, and then he’s walking away and Alec can’t find the words to say it back, can’t find the strength to run after him, just stays there, frozen, as he wonders if maybe he made a mistake after all.

\--

Alec is not moping, no matter what Izzy tells him. He’s _fine_. Sure, summer’s over and he hasn’t seen Magnus for two weeks now, but it’s whatever. It was just a summer fling. They ended things. It’s fine. Alec’s totally cool with it.

Okay, so, maybe he’s not 100% cool with it. Like, he kind of really misses Magnus. Misses his weird pick-up lines, his bright smile, his sparkling eyes. It’s weird, because the more time he spends away from Magnus, the more he realizes he’s never actually cared more for a person than that he did for Magnus. He doesn’t tell Izzy this, though. He doesn’t want to listen to her ‘I told you so’.

So now he spends most of his days silently working in the kitchen of the restaurant, wishing he’d had the balls to at least ask Magnus for his number. Things turn out to be horribly dull without him.

Tonight offers no promise at all of being anything better. They’ve run out of pumpkin soup, and somehow Alec volunteered to make new one. Honestly, he could really do without having to put fucking five liters of pumpkin goop through a sieve. A tiny ass sieve, at that. This is probably going to take him the whole night.

If that isn’t already bad enough, the soup gets fucking _everywhere_ , and before he knows it he’s a walking advertisement for pumpkin soup. Which wouldn’t really be that bad, honestly, since it happens a lot. He works in a kitchen, after all. Most of the time he ends up with more food on his chef’s jacket than on the actual plate. But of course, this specific night, when he actually resembles a pumpkin himself, is the night someone in the restaurant requests to see him.

It’s happened before, where a guest would like to speak to one of the chefs, usually to either criticize their dish in front of the whole restaurant, which is just plain rude, or to praise them, which often gets rather awkward, because Alec never knows how to take a compliment.

Still, when Izzy enters the kitchen with that devious smile on her face that doesn’t promise much good, he follows her with a sigh, wiping his hands on his pants as he goes.

“Trust me, big bro, you’re going to love this guest,” She says, as she pushes open the doors and walks into the restaurant.

“I doubt it,” Alec mutters. Of course whoever wants to see him is situated all the way in the back, which means Alec has to pass a good bunch of guests looking like he just went dumpster diving at a pumpkin farm.

When they finally arrive at the table of this ‘guest’, Alec freezes on the spot. Because sitting there, is someone he’s all too familiar with. Someone he didn’t think he would see again.

“Magnus,” he breaths out, and Magnus turns around, sending him a bright and brilliant smile.

“Alexander,” Magnus probably wanted to go for something different, probably had it all thought out in his head, knowing exactly what he would say if he saw Alec, but that all seems to fly out of the window as soon as his eyes actually meet Alec’s.

“You’re here,” Alec says dumbly, and Magnus laughs.

“I am. Come on, please sit down, so we can talk.” Magnus gestures to the chair across from him and Alec sits, to stunned to think about how it must look like to the other guests. He’s suddenly awfully aware of the fact he’s still covered in pumpkin soup, and idly wipes at his cheek. The look on Magnus’s face tells him he’s only making it worse.

“Why?” Alec eventually says, when he realizes he’s been staring at Magnus for a good few minutes now.

Magnus smile softens. “Because I wanted to see you again, of course.” He says it like it’s the most obvious thing on the planet. “After we said goodbye I just… I thought maybe you didn’t want me as much as I wanted you. But then I wrote this article for the New York Times… It was about love and summer and festivals and how everything eventually comes to an end, quite dramatic now I look back at it. Anyway, to anyone who didn’t know me it seemed like a homage to festivals or something like that. To people who _did_ know me, like your lovely sister over there,” he points to Izzy, who’s pretending to clean a table close enough to be able to eavesdrop on their conversation, “It was obvious who it was about.” Magnus looks up at Alec. “You.”

“Oh,” Alec says, because he doesn’t really know what else to say. “What?”

Magnus sighs, “Look, Alexander, if you’re really not interested in me, that’s fine. Just tell me and I’ll walk out of that door right now. But if there is some part of you that wants this, some part of you that thinks that we can make this work, like your sister believes there is, then please. Please don’t make me leave.”

“I…” Alec pauses. “Izzy contacted you?”

“Are you really surprised?” Magnus says with a raised eyebrow.

Alec fondly shakes his head. “No, not really.” He runs his hand through his hair, belatedly realizing it now probably has pumpkin soup in it. “I, uh, she’s right. I do like you. And I do want to make it work. I just… Aren’t we too different? I’m just. I’m scared. That it won’t work out in the long run.”

“Really? That’s why?” Magnus says, and he looks like he’s about to laugh. “Alexander, what makes you different from me is what makes you _special_. Do you really think I could date someone who is _exactly_ like me? Of course not! I like you for who you are, and I think it’s worth giving a shot, don’t you?”

“I,” Alec looks up at Magnus, at the soft tentative smile on his face, the hopeful look in his eyes. Maybe it won’t work out, this thing between them. But maybe it will, and Alec figures it’s worth the shot. “Yeah. Let’s do it.”

“Good.” Magnus says, looking as happy as Alec feels. “Let’s do breakfast tomorrow. Should I call you or can I just nudge you.”

His eyes have that mischievous sparkle that Alec likes so much about them and he laughs louder than is probably necessary. It’s just, he’s really, really happy. And it feels really good.

(And yes, Magnus nudges him for breakfast the next morning.)

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> the pumpkin soup thing is something that actually happened to me when i was still working in the kitchen and my parents decided to step by and i had to walk through the entire restaurant looking like a jack-o-lantern just puked all over me so that was fun. magnus rainboots are also inspired by a pair i own myself, and the button-up is like the one matthew daddario was wearing to wondercon the other day lmao
> 
> ANYWAY rebloggable version of this fic can be found on tumblr [here](http://aleclwb.tumblr.com/post/141734969506/give-it-a-go-magnusalec-12k-you-know-what) and my blog can be found [here](http://aleclwb.tumblr.com) :)))))


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